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SEATTLE - A lieutenant with the Seattle Police Department saw a driver chasing a pedestrian and took a drastic measure to stop them.
The incident happened around 2:20 p.m. on Sept. 15. Seattle Police Lt. Heidi Tuttle drove her SUV into the Toyota Prius to prevent what she described as an increasingly inevitable pedestrian crash.
The backstory:
"The Prius shot out from Southwest Othello onto 47th and he almost clipped my back panel," said Lt. Tuttle.
This is when she began to watch the vehicle and noticed erratic behavior, saying it was clear the driver had his eyes on a man in the street, according to a statement from SPD.
Seattle police officer rams Prius to stop pedestrian accident
The lieutenant continued, saying she watched the car almost hit several other vehicles before narrowly missing a pedestrian. Once she saw the car do a three-point turn to get back into the path of the person running, she said she decided to act.
This is when she rammed her cruiser SUV into the silver Prius with gold paint to stop it from continuing to chase the person running away, according to the Seattle Police Department.
"He was 15-20 feet from hitting the guy," Lt. Tuttle said.
The police department reports she made the decision to drive her SUV into the chaotic scene to stop the 29-year-old Prius driver. She sped toward the Prius and slammed into him, pushing him off course.
The driver fled, according to SPD documents. However, witnesses captured him on camera and police were able to quickly make an arrest less than a mile from the scene. He was booked into King County Jail for investigation of assault.
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The Source: Information in this story came from the Seattle Police Department.